CHAPTER 11*
The Ideal Davidic King*
and from his roots a bud shall blossom.a
a spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
A spirit of counsel and of strength,
a spirit of knowledge and of fear of the LORD,
Not by appearance shall he judge,
nor by hearsay shall he decide,
and decide fairly for the land’s afflicted.c
He shall strike the ruthless with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked.d
and faithfulness a belt upon his hips.e
and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat;
The calf and the young lion shall browse together,
with a little child to guide them.f
together their young shall lie down;
the lion shall eat hay like the ox.g
and the child lay his hand on the adder’s lair.
for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the LORD,
as water covers the sea.
Restoration*
The root of Jesse,
set up as a signal for the peoples—
Him the nations will seek out;
his dwelling shall be glorious.h
The Lord shall again take it in hand
to reclaim the remnant of his people
that is left from Assyria and Egypt,
Pathros, Ethiopia, and Elam,
Shinar, Hamath, and the isles of the sea.i
and gather the outcasts of Israel;
The dispersed of Judah he shall assemble
from the four corners of the earth.
and those hostile to Judah shall be cut off;
Ephraim shall not envy Judah,
and Judah shall not be hostile to Ephraim;
of the Philistines to the west,
together they shall plunder the people of the east;*
Edom and Moab shall be their possessions,
and the Ammonites their subjects.
and wave his hand over the Euphrates with his fierce wind,
And divide it into seven streamlets,
so that it can be crossed in sandals.k
that is left from Assyria,
As there was for Israel
when it came up from the land of Egypt.l
* [11:1–16] Isaiah 11 contains a prophecy of the rise of a new Davidic king who will embody the ancient ideal of Davidic kingship (vv. 1–9), an elaboration of that prophecy in a further description of that king’s rule (v. 10), and a prophecy of God’s deliverance of the chosen people from exile and cessation of enmities (vv. 11–16).
* [11:1–9 (10)] Here Isaiah looks forward to a new Davidide who will realize the ancient ideals (see Ps 72). The oracle does not seem to have a particular historical person in mind.
* [11:1] Shoot…stump: the imagery suggests the bankruptcy of the monarchy as embodied in the historical kings, along with the need for a new beginning, to spring from the very origin from which David and his dynasty arose. Jesse: David’s father (cf. 1 Sm 16:1–13).
* [11:2–3] The source of the traditional names of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. The Septuagint and the Vulgate read “piety” for “fear of the Lord” in its first occurrence, thus listing seven gifts.
* [11:6–9] This picture of the idyllic harmony of paradise is a dramatic symbol of universal peace and justice under the rule of the new Davidic king. The peace and harmony even among carnivores and their natural prey in this description suggest a paradisiac aspect of the reign of the new king.
* [11:10–16] This passage, with its reference to God’s people in widely scattered lands, is probably from a much later period. God will restore them to their own land. The reconciliation of Ephraim (i.e., the Northern Kingdom) and Judah reverses what Isaiah saw as a disastrous event of the past (cf. 7:17). God’s action is likened to a new exodus, analogous to the time God first acquired Israel in bringing them out of the land of Egypt. Pathros: upper Egypt. Elam: east of Babylonia. Shinar: Babylonia. Hamath: on the Orontes River in Syria. Isles: or coastlands, in the Mediterranean.
* [11:14] People of the east: tribes in the Arabian Desert (cf. Jgs 6:3, 33; 7:12).
* [11:15] Tongue: perhaps to be identified with the Gulf of Suez.
a. [11:1] Is 4:2; 53:2; Jer 23:5–6; 33:14–16; Zec 3:8; 6:12; Rev 22:16.
b. [11:2] Is 42:1; 1 Sm 16:13; Mt 3:16; Mk 1:10; Jn 1:32.
d. [11:4] 2 Thes 2:8; Rev 2:16.
h. [11:10] Is 2:2–4; Rom 15:12.
i. [11:11] Ex 3:20; Jer 23:7–8; 31:1–22; Zec 10:10.
Copyright 2019-2025 USCCB, please review our Privacy Policy